Standing Up a More Capable Joint Task Force Headquarters

摘要

When the Department of Defense (DoD) is called on to respond to domestic or international crises, it typically uses a joint task force (JTF) to quickly integrate forces and capabilities across the military services. The use of JTFs has increased over the past decade, and their range of missions has expanded. Recent well-known examples include building partner capacity in the Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA), civil support for Hurricane Katrina (JTF-Katrina), and disaster relief in Haiti (JTF-Haiti). There has been some concern among senior policymakers in DoD that the headquarters element of a JTF has some serious shortcomings. JTF headquarters (JTF HQ) are staffed by personnel from the tactical headquarters of the military services as well as by joint augmentees, who add depth in critical areas. Specific concerns about JTF headquarters include the length of time needed to establish them, the ability to staff them appropriately, and their ability to coordinate with the military services, U.S. government agencies, and forces from other countries. The U.S. Army asked RAND Arroyo Center to help improve the Army's ability to quickly establish a more capable JTF HQ. Key Points: (1) Demand for Joint Task Force headquarters (JTF H Qs) is likely to remain high; (2) The Army can provide the core of many JTF HQs, but other services and government agencies must contribute some key personnel; and (3) DoD processes to identify and assign key personnel to JTF H Qs need to be improved.